The evaluation method for profiling a house's potential for solar power is presently manual labor-intensive. A typical house evaluation includes the required instruments and a climb atop the roof to profile the solar power potential by estimated k/W hours and expected return on investment following the assessment of roof geometry and the effect on shading from obstructions. If the house has the necessary geometric specifications and reasonable annual solar exposure, then a certain solar power system size is recommended. However, the process is time-consuming and relatively expensive.
A typical homeowner who is considering solar power must first find a listing of solar providers, and then arrange a time and date for each one of them to evaluate the house for potential. This often occurs as many as five separate times, as opinions and measurements differ between evaluations. The aggregate effect on the solar industry is considerable. From the initial inquiry through to installation, the resources spent on evaluations can run into the hundreds of dollars. This cost is ultimately passed on to consumers, for whom this is often the chief obstacle when considering solar power. In other cases, those who own houses that are perfectly situated to exploit the benefits of distributed solar power are often unaware of the investment potential. Currently, targeted demographic marketing is the primary tool used in the expansion of solar power.
The present system and method solves a key problem in residential solar power distribution by removing the need for physical site visits to survey and qualify houses for potential solar power utilization. Using various types of satellite and remote-sensing technology in addition to datasets already made available by the United States Census Bureau, commercial demographic services, and municipal parcel databases, the present system employs GIS or IGS (Interactive Geometric Software) software to analyze numerous variables, in three dimensions, related to a given dwelling, including the surface area of its roof; the slope and direction of the roof's various portions; related address and owner information for each dwelling; also, items specific to the microclimate and precise geographic location of the structure are taken into account by the process including potential shading from trees and other local structures and obstructions. The information required as input data for the GIS system is obtained using aerial remote sensing technology.